Gordie Howe Hat Trick

Gordie Howe Hat Trick

2 Corinthians 13:14- The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Ephesians 1:3 - Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

Titus 2:13 - …looking for the blessed hope and the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 3:17-18 - Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Deuteronomy 6:4- Hear, O Israel: TheLordour God, theLordis one.

A Gordie Howe Hat Trick, named in honor of forward Gordie Howe who was famous for his ability to both score and fight during his Hall of Fame career,is a variation on the hat-trick, where a player scores a goal, records an assist, and gets in a fight all in one game. There are three distinctly different aspects or parts that make up one Gordie Howe Hat Trick – the goal, the assist, and the fight. The Trinity can be a tough concept, but like the Gordie Howe Hat Trick which has three distinct parts, the Trinity has three distinct Persons - the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – who are one God.

"For many Christians, the Trinity is an abstract principle, a confusing and difficult doctrine that they believe, although they are not really sure why in their honest moments.” says James R. White in his article Loving the Trinity. And who would have thought this could easily be solved by comparing it to a Gordie Howe Hat Trick? In seriousness, it can be tough to explain, and tough to grasp, but it’s important to know what the Bible says, and to more and more understand who God is.

There are many scripture that refer to the different persons of the Trinity, but the scripture listed above identify each of them as God. God the Father (Eph 1:3), God the Son, Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13), and God the Holy Spirit (2 Cor 3:18). And yet scripture is also very clear that there is only one God – “This is what the LORD says- Israel's King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.” – Isaiah 44:6 - and that the Lord is one (Deuteronomy 6:4).

Reflecting on the Trinity gives a sense of awe for God, and in some sense, the difficulty of understanding the Trinity is encouraging, to know that God is not so simple or small that we can comprehend His fullness or put Him in a box. And yet, our God is an extremely personal God – One who dwells within us and adopts us as His children, and helps us to know Him (1 Corinthians 2).

As a hockey player, it’s easy to talk about what a goal, an assist, and a fight and to easily say they combine to make up Gordie Howe Hat Trick. As a Christian, we should be able to talk about the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and to have some understanding that these three distinct Persons combine to make up the one true God.

If someone asked, how would you describe the Trinity to them?
Which Person of the Trinity do you feel you know the least?

For more reading see Genesis 1:26, Deuteronomy 4:35-39, John 20:28, Acts 5:3-4